The Plan

Jiuzhou Automobile Factory, Factory Director's Office.

The new year had passed, and everything was back on track.

Throughout the Chinese New Year period, the Jiuzhou factory had operated normally, and now it had returned to its regular working state.

Leaning back in his office chair, Xu Yifan looked up at the ceiling, the scenes from the holiday flashing through his mind again, a smile unconsciously appearing on his lips.

The family reunion was warm and harmonious, everything was so wonderful!

He calculated that in his previous life, Xu Yifan had also been close to thirty years old.

After being reborn into this body, his attitude towards his family had been a mix of anticipation and awkwardness, his emotions complex.

This time, after returning home for the New Year, the awkwardness had lessened considerably, replaced by a sense of happiness.

He wondered if it was because his parents and family in this life were truly wonderful, or if all families were like this. The experiences during the New Year felt like a dream.

Returning home, he went shopping for New Year's goods with his father and mother, chatted about company matters, and his father, who had been running a company for decades, gave Xu Yifan pointers on how the company should develop next.

The family ate New Year's Eve dinner together and watched the Spring Festival Gala.

He paid New Year's visits to relatives and friends, and under his father's guidance, he met several major businessmen from the provincial capital, as well as officials...

The network of connections built over generations was gradually being revealed to him.

While it might not seem particularly useful at the moment, it could potentially provide immense help at some crucial point in the future.

Of course, Xu Yifan didn't place much importance on these things.

What mattered more was the time spent with his family!

He could still clearly feel his mother's care, despite her slightly stern and nagging nature.

She'd tell his father not to smoke, to drink less alcohol, and would always think of her children when it came to good food, urging them to eat more meat and drink more milk, and to exercise regularly.

His gentle father always had a smile on his face, even showing a touch of indulgence towards his child.

Scenes like these were something Xu Yifan had fantasized about countless times before, but in his previous life, none of them had ever come true.

During the New Year, he was more concerned with how to avoid his relatives, where to find food, and tried his best not to go home, always being alone.

But from now on, it would be completely different!

Even just a simple memory brought a smile to Xu Yifan's face.

However, the New Year had passed, and everyone should return to their respective posts.

His parents needed to go to work and handle company matters, busy with their own jobs.

And Xu Yifan also needed to manage Jiuzhou Automobile.

After a long while, having revisited the New Year's events in his mind, Xu Yifan finally came back to his senses.

It was time to handle official business!

As his thoughts moved, the system panel appeared before his eyes.

[Super Factory System: Level 1]
[Funds: 28,950,000]
[Buildings: Production Workshop Level 1, Research and Development Center Level 1, Battery Research and Development Center Level 1, Employee Dormitory Level 1, Cafeteria Level 1, Warehouse Level 1, Office Building Level 2.]
[Employees: 587 (Satisfaction: 67%)]
[Products: Jiuzhou Mini (Old Man Happy) (Production Technology: Average) (Product Quality: Average) (Annual Output: Over 20,000 units)]
[Technology: None (A garbage company with no core technology of its own!)]

Compared to before the New Year, his funds had increased slightly, earning a few million. If he hadn't spent a large sum, he would have had over thirty million.

In addition, he had hired more employees, and their satisfaction had increased a little.

Next was the research progress on the new lithium iron phosphate battery.

With a thought from Xu Yifan, the detailed information of the Battery Research and Development Center appeared.

[Battery Research and Development Center Level 1]
[Research Project: New Lithium Iron Phosphate Battery Technology, Progress: 96%!]

The progress was nearing 100%!

Xu Yifan calculated silently, "It should take about another week or so to complete the research and development of the new lithium iron phosphate battery, and Jiuzhou Automobile Factory will have its own technology!"

Speaking of which, besides spending eight million to accelerate the research progress earlier, Xu Yifan had also spent three million during the New Year period to increase the research progress by 10%.

Perhaps the technical challenges this time weren't particularly significant, and they hadn't hired external help.

With the researchers working like they were on steroids, staying up all night and losing hair, coupled with a bit of 'luck', they had overcome the minor technical hurdle in three days.

Both Xu Yifan and the researchers were very satisfied with this.

"I love working, no one can stop me from working, I'll die in the lab if I have to."

"New Year? What's New Year? Isn't earning three million great!"

"Shine and contribute to Jiuzhou Automobile Factory, burn myself out!"

"I will devote myself to the utmost, until death itself! I must be worthy of the money the boss pays me!"

"No sleep until R&D is complete, ahhhhh~"

"I can actually earn this much money. As expected, knowledge is wealth!"

"Don't hold me back, I need to experiment, I need to experiment!"

"Rest? Time is money, brothers! Experiment, experiment, get moving, and get those brains working too!"

Recalling the fervent researchers in his mind, Xu Yifan was a little shocked by their level of madness!

He quickly shook his head, pushing away the images of when he had gone to pay the researchers earlier.

"Excluding the 11 million spent on accelerating R&D, plus the lab construction costs, employee salaries, and so on, the total expenditure comes to around 15 million."

"15 million to develop a new type of lithium iron phosphate battery? That's practically a massive profit!"

"However, now that the battery is nearing completion, a large amount of money will be needed again soon."

After the battery technology is developed, it needs to be applied to actual products. A new battery factory needs to be established, along with factory construction, hiring employees, and so on – all areas that require spending money!

This 29 million might seem like a lot, but it won't last long.

"Damn it, why can't the system just give me the technology directly, or the finished product? That would be so much better!"

He sighed and calculated the funds needed for the next stage.

First, 10 million cannot be touched.

This is the essential working capital that needs to be kept aside for purchasing materials, producing the Jiuzhou Mini, and making advance payments for contract manufacturing of the Jiuzhou Mini with car factories.

"Aside from that, there's another 19 million. Let's round it up to 20 million."

"After the battery R&D project is completed, and before funds are abundant, try to use less for accelerating R&D and allocate more funds towards expanding production capacity."

"Batteries are one of the crucial components for the future Jiuzhou Mini and more upcoming models. The more production capacity, the better."

After some thought, Xu Yifan planned to spend 15 million to build a battery factory with an annual capacity of approximately 200,000 units of the Jiuzhou Mini.

Compared to cars, which have complex manufacturing processes and numerous components, building a battery factory is relatively simpler, and its production capacity is not as restrictive as car manufacturing.

In this year of 2009, 15 million is enough to establish a very decent-sized battery production plant.

This factory should be sufficient for Jiuzhou's needs for the next two years.

The remaining 5 million, along with the profits from the Jiuzhou Mini in the coming period, Xu Yifan planned to use for the production of another product for the company.